The good, the bad and the expensive

You wont believe how much you paid to defend a couple of ISP officers

There are many good cops working for Illinois
State Police. Keep repeating that phrase to yourself as you read
on; otherwise, you might think ISP is awash in scofflaws. There are
many good cops there, many good ones. I hear from a few — some active, some
retired and working for ISP on contract, some (without juice) just
plain retired — by phone and e-mail and forwarded messages.
In blunt and bitter missives, they bewail what they perceive as the
tarnishing of their agency’s sterling reputation. They complain about a case in Lincoln, where
Special Agent Cynthia Robbins and Master Sgt. Rebecca Dewitt-Early
violated the Miranda rights of Louis Russo II — a 21-year-old
man suspected of killing his 3-month-old daughter — so many
times that his confession and indictment had to be thrown out. They complain about a case in Fairview
Heights, where Lt. Col. Rich Woods cold-cocked an acquaintance in a
Blockbuster (pun unavoidable) video store on Aug. 13 and has so far escaped discipline. And, of course, they complain about the case
in Champaign, where a federal jury found Capt. Steve Fermon and Lt.
Col. Diane Carper had retaliated against then-Lt. Michale Callahan
due to his efforts to re-open a murder investigation he believed
had sent two innocent men to prison. Well, wait. I should clarify: They don’t
complain about the actions of Robbins or Dewitt-Early or Woods,
Carper, or Fermon as much as they complain about the hierarchy that
has let them all skate. In the Lincoln case, for example, special
prosecutor David Rands was set to indict Dewitt-Early, and Robbins,
along with Sgt. Angela Grable and Lt. Carlo Jiannoni — who
just happened to be both Robbins’ supervisor and her live-in
boyfriend — on charges of obstruction of justice and official
misconduct, when they agreed to accept administrative discipline
instead. The popular theory among the ranks is that these four got
a deal because they threatened to spill some very damaging beans on
a higher-ranking ISP official. Similarly, in the Fairview Heights case, the
Blockbuster victim — whose assault and subsequent crash into
the candy shelf was caught on tape — is said to have dropped
the charges after receiving an informative visit from another ISP
officer (retired but on contract). Had Woods been convicted of battery,
he would have lost his right to carry a gun and ISP would have had no
choice but to terminate him. In the Champaign case, the controversy centers
on whether heads should have rolled the day the jury awarded
Callahan punitive damages in the amount of $195,600 against Carper
and $276,700 against Fermon. State law requires termination of any
policymaking officers assessed punitive damages for violating an
employee’s civil rights. Yet the ISP administration has
instead fought to keep Carper and Fermon on the payroll while they
appeal the amount of the damages. So I’m bracing myself for more e-mails
and phone calls when the guys hear how much the four private
attorneys appointed to represent Carper, Fermon and a third
official (no finding of guilt against him) have billed us
taxpayers. Are you sitting down? It’s $685,059.13, just
through May 31. Asked why the attorney bills were paid from
the state’s general fund, and why the tab for Fermon
($369,023) was more than twice the price for Carper or the third
defendant, ISP spokesman M/Sgt. Rick Hector sent me an e-mail
explaining that private counsel was necessary since the attorney general’s office had a
conflict of interest, and that the fees had been approved by the
AG’s office. He didn’t answer my specific questions. “Since the case is still pending before
federal court, further statements from any source could taint the
jury pool,” Hector wrote. The trial happened in April, so this amount
should represent the biggest chunk of the bill, one would hope.
Yet, the post-trial conferences, mediations, and hearings are
continuing as ISP seeks to lower the punitive costs. The next
hearing is set for Nov. 1. Here’s the thing: I know of at least
four other lawsuits currently pending in which ISP employees are
suing their own agency. No matter who wins the ultimate verdict,
the whole purging process that is the legal system will undoubtedly
reveal more information about the inner workings of ISP. As we watch from the sidelines, we all need to
remind ourselves even this load of lawsuits doesn’t taint the
average trooper, the working cop putting his or her own safety on
the line trying to keep us safe on the interstate. There are many
good cops working for Illinois State Police, many good ones.